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Opioid Use in GA

Emergency Help for Opioid Overdose

There is an opioid abuse epidemic in Georgia and throughout the entire country. Opioid deaths in District 4 continue to rise. Opioids are used to dull the sensation of pain. Opioids are a class of drugs that include the illegal drug heroin, synthetic opioids such as fentanyl, and pain relievers available legally by prescription, such as oxycodone (OxyContin®), hydrocodone (Vicodin®), codeine, morphine, and many others. Many produce a sense of euphoria and result in addiction.

Opioid drugs also pose the danger of accidental overdose, which can stop breathing. By definition, overdose is ingesting more than the recommended amount of a substance. Drug overdose often implies the toxic and overwhelming effect of drugs taken in amounts greater than the body has a capacity to handle.

Death and permanent organ damage can occur.

Naloxone blocks or reverses the effects of opioid medication, including extreme drowsiness, slowed breathing or loss of consciousness. Naloxone is used to treat a narcotic overdose in an emergency situation. It should be used until the patient can receive emergency medical care for an overdose.

Signs of Opioid Overdose#1 sign of opioid overdose is unresponsiveness

Limited liability for possession of small amounts of drugs and/or alcohol- this applies to the victim as well as the caller

Limited liability for breaches of parole, restraining order, probation and other violations

Naloxone immunity for prescribers, pharmacists and first responders

Steps to take for opioid overdose victims

Call 911 immediately, report a drug overdose, and give the street address and location of the victim. If there are other persons available, send someone to wait in the street for the ambulance and guide the emergency medical technicians to the victim.

Try to rouse the victim by speaking loudly, pinching, or rubbing your knuckles vigorously up and down the sternum (the bony part in the middle of the chest.)

Make sure the victim is breathing. If not, administer rescue breathing (mouth-to-mouth) by pinching the victim’s nose shut and blowing into the mouth. Lay the victim on their side after they have resumed breathing on their own.

Administer an opioid antagonist, such as Naloxone, if you have it and know how to use it.

Stay with the victim until help arrives, and act quickly to administer rescue breathing if they stop breathing. Encourage the victim to cooperate with the ambulance crew.

Most Commonly Abused OpioidsPrescription opioids can be prescribed by doctors to treat moderate to severe pain, but can also have serious risks and side effects. Common types are oxycodone (OxyContin), hydrocodone (Vicodin), morphine, and methadone.

Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid pain reliever. It is many times more powerful than other opioids and is approved for treating severe pain, typically advanced cancer pain. llegally made and distributed fentanyl has been on the rise in several states.

Heroin is an illegal opioid. Heroin use has increased across the U.S. among men and women, most age groups, and all income levels.

Pharmacy Access to NaloxoneThere are two ways to access a naloxone rescue kit from a pharmacy in Georgia:

Obtain a prescription from your prescriber and take it to a pharmacy that stocks naloxone

Go directly to a pharmacy and request a naloxone kit. A standing order for naloxone was issued to all pharmacies in Georgia on Dec. 14, 2016; a prescription for naloxone is not needed.

Drug Overdose Surveillance UnitThe Drug Overdose Surveillance Unit monitors overdose trends in Georgia, and provides overdose data to the public and to partners working to end the opioid epidemic. This data is also used to detect and respond to rapid increases, or clusters, of overdoses, such as the Counterfeit Percocet-Related Overdose Cluster in Macon during June 2017.

During the 2017 legislative session, the Georgia General Assembly passed House Bill 249 which provided for several changes to the PDMP:

Effective July 1, 2017, dispensers will be required to enter prescription information for Schedule II, III, IV, V controlled substances within 24 hours. This will provide prescribers more efficient access to information with less wait time as they make the best clinical decisions possible for their patients.

All prescriberswill be required to register in the PDMP byJan. 1, 2018. Currently only about 10 percent of prescribers in Georgia are registered in the PDMP. Prescribers already registered DO NOT need to re-register.

Beginning July 1, 2018, prescribers will be required to check PDMP before prescribing opiates or cocaine derivatives in Schedule II drugs or benzodiazepines. (Prescribers are currently encouraged to check the PDMP but are not yet required to do so.)

House Bill 249 was designed to reduce prescription drug misuse in Georgia. Download a fact sheet to learn how prescribers comply with the law.